Issue link: https://digital.copcomm.com/i/1521244
No one had shot this remote location before except for a documentary about the local hyenas who were blind because of the intense sand storms. It was a very restricted area as well, because part of the place was a high-security diamond operation or a national park. If the wind wasn't blowing, it could be densely fogged. Vehicles were restricted and it meant carrying a lot of the equipment and dressing in by hand. To get this all done, I had a really hardworking and talented crew from South Africa and Namibia headed up by Art Director Chris Bass and Set Decorator Maria Labuschagne. But going there really elevated the look in a way that would not have been the same in CG. And certainly, performance-wise, it made a huge difference for the actors. I am super grateful to the producers for making it happen. There is a lot to cover with a show of this scale but I wanted to at least hit on the types of tools we used to bring the game into a film experience. And there were certainly many more people who helped to make that happen I couldn't get to in this article. In fact, we shot the series in two parts, breaking after episode three and several key crew in my staff did change. Yet somehow they met and exceeded the challenges of keeping the level of work up. Word had gotten out, the show was a tough one. Headed up by Chris Shriver the new crew stepped up to the challenge. I am fortunate to have gotten such brave and talented people who completed the work. ADG Howard Cummings, Production Designer Laura Ballinger (Eps 1-3), Chris Shriver (Eps 3-8), Super vising Art Directors Ann Bartek, Michael Simmons, Angelica Borrero Fortier, Christopher Bass, Richard T. (Rico) Olson, Art Directors Peter Dorsey, Aimee Dombo Desmond, Lisa Merik, Michael L. Auszura, Jonathan Collins, Reid Thompson, Jeremy W. Foil, Set Designers Thang Le, Senior Illustrator Matthew J. Sama, Ali Kashfi, Wes Louie, Reginald Polynice, Illustrators Holly Watson (Lead), Kalani Akuna (Lead), Jeremy Wong, Dan-ah Kim, Juli Sasaki, Louisa Savage, Graphic Artists Dan Caplan, Stor yboard Artist Regina Graves, Maria Labuschagne (Namibia), Set Decorators E D